A Colorado city put a cap on new housing – and proved why it doesn’t work
via the Guardian
Raksha Vasudevan, Thu 3 Aug 2023 14.00 EDT
In 2017, Stephanie Deveaux noticed her city and neighborhood were changing. Lying on Denver’s western outskirts, Lakewood was known for its spacious single-family homes, good public schools, pristine parks and Rocky Mountain views. But many of the things that made Lakewood so livable seemed under threat.
“All these multiunit dwellings [were] starting to be developed,” she said, referring to the boxy, ultramodern and monotone buildings now scattered across Lakewood. “And then lands that I thought had been earmarked for open space, those started to get filled up.”
Cathy Kentner, a teacher and Lakewood planning commission member, also noticed those same tall buildings “adjacent to small single-family homes and cutting off all their sunlight”; deteriorating streets; busier hospitals; and green space being replaced by “a sea of concrete”. She mentioned the murals dotting several buildings along West Colfax Avenue as an example. “I really appreciate the art that they put on the outside, how it’s all green and plants,” she said. “[But] how nice would it be to actually have some real greenery.”
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